The New York City Department of Transportation (DOT) today announced plans to implement a new truck delivery "window" along Brooklyn's Church Avenue from East 16th to East 21st streets to ease congestion along the busy commercial corridor, improve parking opportunities for all motorists and enhance deliveries for the many businesses in the area. Working with Brooklyn's Community Board 14 and the Church Avenue Business Improvement District, DOT designed the plan to address the local community's concerns about chronic traffic congestion on Church Avenue. The new parking regulations, set to begin on Jan. 18, 2011, designate 40 metered spaces for weekday truck deliveries from 7 a.m. – noon, freeing up the one-hour metered parking spaces in the afternoons for other motorists. Metered parking for passenger vehicles will continue to be available all day at 90 meters on Church Avenue and on side streets. By consolidating freight deliveries to morning hours, the initiative optimizes the use of curb space by encouraging deliveries to be made earlier in the day, reduces double parking and curb idling and supports the city's economy by making it easier for business patrons to park. For businesses that need later deliveries, truck loading and unloading will be available until 3 p.m. on weekdays on Church Avenue between East 18th and 19th streets.

"Shoppers and delivery drivers will find that time is on their side when it comes to finding parking at local businesses," said DOT Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan. "This winning plan will also help keep traffic moving and keep Church Avenue open for business."

"We are delighted that this important and thorough study has come to fruition, thanks to the Department of Transportation's very close collaboration with Community Board 14, the merchants on Church Avenue, and the community at large," said Doris Ortiz, District Manager for Community Board 14. "Now the City of New York is delivering exactly what Church Avenue needs to keep it thriving!"

"The plan to set aside space for commercial deliveries at the times that have been identified as high volume truck delivery periods should dramatically decrease the double parking problem on Church Avenue and allow trucks to get in and out faster," said Lauren Elvers Collins, Executive Director of the Church Avenue Business Improvement District. "The Church Avenue BID and its businesses are pleased to see that the dedicated work of the NYC DOT and Community Board 14 is paying off with what should prove to be a substantial improvement to the Church Avenue shopping experience."

"The Church Avenue BID and its merchants are excited to see the installation of the commercial delivery window program," Mark Dicus, former Executive Director for the Church Avenue Business Improvement District. "One of the most frequent complaints the BID receives from shoppers is how congested Church Avenue is, and this project is designed to address this, making Church Avenue an even better place to shop and do business."

To determine the feasibility for this parking and traffic-congestion relief project, DOT surveyed traffic and parking patterns in the area and developed a block-by-block plan that balances the need for deliveries with the demand for parking. Among the key findings of the analysis, DOT found that at least one travel lane was blocked by a double-parked vehicle for about a quarter of the day. The study also revealed that 65% of all deliveries to the area occurred before noon, with instances of double parking increasing after 11 a.m. The demand for car parking also was shown to be the highest in the afternoon. The delivery window along Church Avenue strategically allocates areas of limited curb space for specific uses when they're needed most, and also accounts for some area of overlap between parking for the general public and business delivery needs.

While this is the first time this exact approach has been used to improve parking opportunities for trucks in New York City, it builds on the agency's ongoing programs designed to better manage curb space citywide. A similar strategy has been successfully implemented along Fordham Road in the Bronx, and more recently in Manhattan along the busy commercial corridors of First and Second avenues in Manhattan.